Hanford, Wash. – 134 small earthquakes have been detected in Hanford, WA since Sunday according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network.
Scientists refer to these small tremors as crustal quakes. These are clusters of minor earthquakes occurring in the same area around the same time, without a significant main shock event.
The largest of these quakes measured 2.9 on the Richter scale, too small to be felt by people going about their day.
Erin Wirth, a research geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), noted that such activity is not unusual for the region.
“Swarms do happen somewhat frequently around (and) throughout eastern Washington. And again, fortunately, these earthquakes are small and aren’t expected to cause any kind of damage to infrastructure in the region,” Wirth said.
One of the largest earthquakes to ever hit Eastern Washington was in 1872, referred to as the Entitat earthquake. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake hasn’t been beat, however, Wirth says it’s possible.
“So larger earthquakes are possible anywhere throughout the Pacific Northwest. But again, fortunately, those type of events are rare and we don’t see them very often,” stated Wirth.
Wirth reminds residents that on Oct. 17, the state will conduct its Great Washington Shake-Out earthquake drill. At 10:17 a.m., over 800,000 people statewide will practice the “Drop, Cover, and Hold On” procedure.
Wirth also said that this would also be a good time to review emergency plans and update your supply kits.
